The Fragile Dolphin
by JustLittle0ldMe
Summary: It was the season of joy and the season of giving. It was Iruka's favourite time of the year and yet he couldn't seem to get a certain silver-haired Jounin out of his mind; it was his secret wish that Kakashi return the feelings he held. Perhaps, just this once, Iruka could have what he's always wanted; Kakashi's affection. [Oneshot]


Throughout the entire street the sound of children's laughter could be heard, adults exchanged knowing smiles to each other as they swept the crisp autumn leaves off the ground. Every year, around this time in the season, joy was felt from every individual residing in the village; festivals and gifts and lights and music was something everyone thoroughly enjoyed. Umino Iruka was no exception to this rule. As he walked down the lively street towards his small home, a warm smile graced his features; oh, how he adored this time of year. All of his students and their families were preparing for the upcoming events and, as such, he had given them a lengthy holiday to accommodate for their busy schedules.

He almost wished Naruto was here to join him in the celebrations, he missed the boy terribly; not a day went by that he didn't spare a thought toward the little trouble maker.

"I wonder how strong he is now…" Iruka whispered, as he reached the familiar door at the end of a row of houses. His smile slowly turned into a nostalgic expression as he thought back to the days when he was Naruto's teacher; it seemed almost a lifetime ago that the whiskered boy was pulling pranks and begging him to pay for his ramen. Chuckling to himself Iruka took comfort in the fact his sensei was now one of the legendary sannin, Master Jiraiya himself. Naruto was as safe as could be.

With this thought he unlocked his door and entered his warm and cosy home; closing it behind him so no cold air would be let in. He placed his papers on the small coffee table to the left of his sofa, they could wait for a few hours while he prepared his food and changed into more comfortable attire.

After changing and leaving his rice to boil he found himself staring out of his kitchen window as his thoughts drifted to a certain silver-haired Jounin. The man had been dominating a lot of Iruka's thoughts lately, at the most random times Kakashi's face would appear in his head as clear as the sunlight that still lined the sky. Whenever the masked man would hand in his mission report to Iruka he caught himself staring at Kakashi for just that moment longer, brushing their fingers together when he handed Iruka the paper and feeling overwhelming disappointment whenever he left the room.

Iruka was no fool. He was aware of the feelings he held for Kakashi; what plagued his heart, mind and soul the most was whether or not the Jounin felt the same way towards him. Walking back over towards his boiling rice and placing it within a bowl, he recalled tiny details about Kakashi, running over them in his mind. The way the man's eye crinkled whenever he greeted Iruka. The way his left hand always stayed within his pocket unless he was waving goodbye. The way he always held a bored tone of voice, however, subtly tried to keep his and Iruka's conversation going until they had absolutely nothing else to talk about, or Kakashi had to leave the missions room. The way he slouched against the wall while they waited for Asuma and Gai when going out for drinks. The way he carried that little orange book in his back pocket, no matter where they went. The way-

_Knock, knock._

His train of thought was interrupted and he raised his hand to feel his, recently warmed, face; realising he had been blushing. Smiling to himself and shaking his head at what he now believed to be pathetic thoughts he made his way to the door in order to answer it.

As soon as he glanced outside he felt the air leave his lungs. The person before him was slightly leaning to one side with both hands in his pockets, his gravity-defying silver hair was gently swaying in the autumn breeze and he had, what Iruka could only assume, a slightly bored expression on his face.

Kakashi's visible eye crinkled and he raised his right hand in order to greet Iruka.

"Yo." He said casually.

Iruka quickly composed himself and tried to will away the remnants of his past blush and the beginnings of small butterflies frantically circling in his stomach.

"Kakashi! What brings you here?" He asked, startled at the fact the man who had only moments ago consumed his thoughts, was standing before him.

"Apologies Iruka, I know it's rather late." Kakashi said, a sheepish look consuming his features. Iruka noted that his left hand was still buried within his pocket and with his free hand he started to scratch the back of his neck, coupled with the sheepish look on his face Iruka couldn't help but find it completely adorable and he rewarded the masked man with a warm smile.

"That's quite alright, I was just about to start grading some papers, and your visit gives me a nice distraction." Iruka replied with a grin, bringing his own hand up to scratch at the scar that ran across his nose; it was a nervous habit he had formed over the years.

"Would you like to come in?" Iruka asked, anticipation and perhaps a small amount of hope swelled within him.

"Maa, I'm afraid I'll have to decline, Iruka. You see I have a mission and won't be back for a few days but I came by to…ahh…well, you see…"Kakashi trailed off, once again bringing up his right hand up to scratch the side of his face; it was times like these that he was grateful we wore a mask, it hid his embarrassment so well.

Before Iruka could fall too deep into his disappointment, Kakashi proceeded to remove his left hand from his pocket and grasped within it a small, square package wrapped in brown paper. At first glance it was nothing extravagant, no bow or ribbon or colour just a simple, plain, wrapped up box.

Iruka blinked, his expression a mixture of bemusement and surprise, and glanced at Kakashi's left hand outstretched towards him. Hesitantly he took the package from Kakashi and for a moment stood there baffled; he then raised his head to look at the Jounin, patiently waiting for an explanation.

With both hands put back in the safe confinements of his pockets, the copy-nin adopted his usual expression of boredom; however, if a person where to look close enough they would see a certain type of warmth within his deep brown eyes.

"Happy holidays, Iruka" Kakashi whispered calmy; with the hint of a smile underneath his mask, before poofing off and leaving behind nothing but smoke in his wake.

Hand still holding on to the package in mid-air, Iruka could only stare at the place where Kakashi had been standing mere seconds ago. It took a few moments for him to wrap his mind around what had just taken place before his face started to glow a warm shade of red, his lips curled upwards in a shy smile and his free hand came up to scratch the scar on his nose.

Slowly he unwrapped the small package that had just been given to him and took the lid off a silver box that now lay in his palm. Crystal stared back at him. Winking as sunlight was captured in its solid prison. A fragile glass dolphin was the only thing that resided on the satin bed inside the box and yet to Iruka it was one of the most beautiful creations he had ever laid eyes upon. He gasped and tears of joy filled his eyes as he traced the glass dolphin gingerly with his rough fingertips. Kakashi had given him this. The Jounin he so adored had given him this most magnificent gift; he could hardly believe it too be true. His heart swelled with love and ecstasy and affection as he placed the lid back to cover this precious gift and held it close to his chest.

"Happy holidays, Kakashi" he replied softly to the empty space in front of him before he quietly closed the door to his small home.


End file.
